A Crush on Their Brother
by Flagg1991
Summary: Luan falls hopelessly in love with Lincoln, but there's a problem: So does Lynn. Now they must compete for his affection.
1. In Love

Things don't just "happen." There's a buildup, a progression. Luan Loud was smart enough to realize that. Cause and effect. Right? Or was that something different?

Looking back over the summer, she realized that she had been falling in love with her brother since at least June, maybe even longer. At the time, she didn't know that she was falling in love with him, she only knew that when she looked at him, her stomach felt funny and her heartbeat sped up. She had never felt that way about a boy before, so it was a foreign emotion, one she couldn't name. At first, she tried to avoid him. She stopped pranking him. She stopped seeking him out and trying her jokes on him. Absence, however, made her heart grow fonder. He was constantly on her mind. Sometimes, she even dreamed of him. In those dreams, they ran through a summery field. She was barefoot, and the grass tickled her ankles. Sometimes Lincoln was in front of her, running and laughing. Other times, he was behind, chasing her.

She didn't know what to make of these dreams, so she ignored them. She tried to act as though everything was normal, but it wasn't. She would look for Lincoln, and if he wasn't there, bitter disappointment would come over her. She would trudge back to her room and sit on her bed, wondering where he was and when he would be back. When she heard his voice, she would jump up and go out into the hall just to see him, her heart crashing with joy.

Last night, she had the dream again. Lincoln was chasing her through the grassy field. The sky was clear blue. The sun was out. Birds chirped. She was giggling and trying to outrun him, but he was too fast, and he caught her, both of them tumbling to the ground in a heap. He was on top, laughing, and she was so happy.

Then, so quickly she couldn't have stopped him if she wanted to, he kissed her, his tongue darting coyly into her mouth. Her mind told her to push him away, but her heart, and her body, told her to hold him close and never let him go.

So she kissed him back, taking his face in her hands and massaging his tongue with her own. When the alarm woke her, she could still taste his lips and smell his scent. Her stomach felt funny again. Her heart pounded against her breast. She rolled over and snuggled the covers, pretending they were Lincoln. When the alarm went off again, she got up, turned it off, and went into the hall. Lynn and Luna were waiting in line for the bathroom. Lana and Lola were bickering in their room over Lana's snoring. She didn't see Lincoln. She thought of going to his door and waking him up, but didn't. What was she thinking? He was her brother! Yuck.

Maybe it was fate, maybe it was God, but he came out of his room then, his pajamas rumpled, his hair messy, and his eyes heavy. In that instant, she realized she didn't care. She was in love with him and that was that.

"Hey, Linc," she said nervously, "wanna hear a joke?"

"What?" he asked sleepily.

"What has nine arms and rocks?"

"What?"

"Def Leppard!"

"That's my joke, man!" Luna called from her station by the door.

Lincoln forced a fake laugh then shambled to the bathroom. Stupid! What kind of joke was that? He probably thought she was a dweeb now.

After showering and getting dressed, she went downstairs. At breakfast, she kept stealing glances at Lincoln, letting her eyes linger over his soft, boyish face. Her heart was pounding so hard that she didn't hear Lynn asking her to pass the syrup until she leaned in and said, "What's with you?"

"Huh?"

"I asked you to pass the syrup like five times. You just sat there looking goofy."

"Sorry. I have a lot on my mind right now."

"You alright?" Lynn asked, concerned. "If anyone's giving you problems, just say the word and I'll wipe the floor with them."

"It's nothing like that. I'm okay."

But she wasn't. She was hopelessly in love with the most caring, thoughtful, handsome, and humble man on earth, and she didn't care about anything else.

Later on, she caught Lincoln as he was coming out of his room. "Hey, Linc, wanna help me with my new routine."

"I can't," he said, "I promised Clyde I'd go to the arcade with him."

"Oh," Luan said, her spirits falling. "Okay. Maybe later?"

"Sure."

She smiled. "Okay!"

Luan went back to her room with a spring in her step, unware that Lynn was watching her.

She wasn't particularly close with Luan, but Lynn knew her sister, and she knew that something was different about her. Come to think of it, she hadn't been herself all summer. Today it was really bad. She'd been floating around the house with a dopey little grin on her face and stealing glances at Lincoln. What was up with her?

Shaking her head, she went to her bed and laid down. She'd been on her way to ask Lincoln if he wanted to play football when she saw him and Luan in the hall. She couldn't lie, she was disappointed he was hanging out with dumb old Clyde. Really disappointed, come to think of it.


	2. That's Why I Love You

Lynn Loud was lying in bed and casually tossing a tennis ball into the air when she heard the front door open and close. _Lincoln_ , she thought, and sat up so quickly that the ball, on the downswing, hit her in the head and bounced off.

The level of her excitement surprised her. She told herself that she just _really_ wanted to play football.

She got up and went into the hall just as Lincoln appeared at the top of the steps. She opened her mouth to call out to him, but Luan beat her to the punch.

"Hey, Linc! You ready to laugh?"

"Sure, just let me use the bathroom."

Lynn gritted her teeth. She wheeled around and went back to her bed, flopping down with a frustrated sigh.

"What's wrong with _you_?" Lucy asked without looking up from her book.

"Nothing," Lynn said sullenly. But what _was_ wrong with her? She was legitimately pissed, and she had no reason to be.

 _I've been laying around waiting for someone to play football with all day. And Lincoln's the only one who'll play with me._

Well, that wasn't entirely true. Lincoln _was_ the only one of her siblings who indulged in her many sports (with the exception, occasionally, of Luna, who was no good despite her rhythm), there were tons of people she could play with.

 _I don't_ want _to play with them, though. I want to play with Lincoln._

That thought made her blink. In a family as big as hers, spending time with individual siblings was hard, and, truth be told, she'd always liked Lincoln just a _little_ more than anyone else, except maybe for Lucy, and that was only because she shared a room with Lucy. Sometimes she worried that having so many sisters would make Lincoln into a pansy, and sometimes he _acted_ like a pansy, then again, she liked how considerate he was, and how he went out of his way to make her and her sisters happy. He was always there when someone had a problem. He'd been there for her many, many times over the years. She loved her sisters and cared deeply for them, but none of them were quite like Lincoln.

The more she thought about it, the madder she got. Why did Luan have to use Lincoln as her test dummy? Didn't she share a room with Luna? Try your new stuff on her.

"You're breathing heavy," Lucy said, turning a page. "There's something wrong." 

"Nothing's wrong!" Lynn snapped, and turned to face the wall. "Leave me alone."

In the next room over, Luan stood on her bed and bowed as Lincoln clapped. "That was actually pretty good," he said.

"Thank you," she said, unable to help the sunny smile spreading across her face. She worked really hard on her act while he was gone. She wanted him to really like it, and judging by the sound of his laughter (sweet, musical laughter), he did. "I'll be here until I'm eighteen. At least."

Lincoln got up from the floor where he had been sitting.

"Hey," she said, hopping off the bed. "Where are you going?"

"To get a snack. I'm hungry."

"I'll get it," she blurted. "What do you want? An apple? Chips?"

"I don't know," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I was just going to go look."

"Alright. Come on."

Before he could protest, she grabbed him by the hand and led him down the stairs. In the kitchen, she opened up the pantry. "We got chips, crackers, oooh, animal crackers, Froot Roll-Ups." She stood on her tippy toes. "Hey, Chicken in a Busict. I don't think they make it with real chicken, though. I think we have some chicken in the fridge from the other night. You want some chicken?"

God, she was rambling.

"I'll have some crackers," Lincoln said hesitantly.

 _Doofus, you're weirding him out!_

"Cheese-It's or Cheese Nips? I like Cheese Nips myself. They're power packed with flavor."

 _God, shut up!_

"I-I'll just take some Cheese Nips."

"Okay!"

She grabbed the box and brought it over to the counter. She was getting a bowl from the counter when Lynn came into the kitchen with a football tucked under her arm. "Hey, bro, you up for tossing the pigskin around?"

"Uhhh...can I have my snack first?"

"Oh, come on," Lynn said, "I've been waiting all day."

"He's hungry," Luan said pointedly.

"He can have a sports bar," Lynn said, taking one out of her pocket.

"He doesn't want a sports bar," Luan said. She was starting to get mad. "He wants Cheese Nips."

Lynn's eyes flashed. "Cheese Nips are for whiney little girls like you."

Luan balled her fist.

"Girls!" Lincoln cried, stepping in-between them. "I like both, okay?" He took the sports bar from Lynn and the bowl of Cheese Nips from Luan. "See? What's gotten into you?"

Lynn blinked. "I'm sorry. I'm just cranky. The heat gets to me." She looked at Luan (but not into her eyes). "I'm sorry, sis. That was way outta line."

Luan swallowed. "I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have harped on you like that."

"Now hug," Lincoln said.

They did, and then he went outside with Lynn while Luan watched through the sliding glass door. _That's why I love him,_ she thought, and sighed deeply.

Outside, Lynn punched Lincoln's arm. "That why I love ya, bro."


	3. Rock and a Hard Place

Play it cool, she told herself, cringing at the memory of how she rambled in the kitchen. If you keep doing that, he's going to go out of his way to avoid you.

It was morning, and Luan had been awake for over an hour, sitting up in bed and listening to the soft sound of Luna's breathing. Outside, the sky was a light shade of orange. Birds sang happily in leafy treetops. A man passed on the sidewalk led by a small dog on a leash.

She woke from a dream about Lincoln and even though she tried, she couldn't go back to sleep. This dream was much like the last one, only this time she was on top and Lincoln was on the bottom. She gazed longingly into his eyes as he laughed, and before she could stop herself, she was kissing him, but it was okay, because he kissed her back, and everything was right in the world.

Ugh, she was so lovesick. How long could she go on like this? She wanted to tell Lincoln how she felt, but the possibility that he would think she was weird or gross made her heart stop in her chest. What if she told him and it ruined their relationship? She could (maybe) handle the idea of him not feeling the same way, but she couldn't stand the thought of losing her brother.

A rock and a hard place. There had to be a joke in there somewhere, but she didn't care to find it. What she wanted was a solution to her problem, and right now, she could see none.

She exhaled heavily.

In the next room over, Lynn was awake too, lying on her back and watching as the first light of day crept across the ceiling. She had had her own dream of Lincoln. They were playing football, and he was running the ball toward the end zone. Gritting her teeth, she gave chase, and tackled him. He was under her, looking up. "Nice hit," he said.

"Thanks," she grinned. She made no move to get off of him. For some reason she couldn't explain, she liked being on top of him and looking at his upturned face. She had the urge to kiss his lips, and came instantly awake in the dark, her heart slamming in her chest. For a long time, she struggled to sleep, but her mind was racing with thoughts. Why did she want to kiss her brother? That was sick!

His face kept crossing her mind, and her heart pitter-pattered. She felt sick to her stomach. At one point, she got up and went to the bathroom, but nothing happened. She went back to her room and laid down again. She thought back to playing football with Lincoln the previous afternoon, and grinned. He was getting better. There was a time when he fumbled more passes than he caught, not he caught more than he fumbled. She was proud of him. His own passes, however, left a lot to be desired. She decided she'd work with him on that after breakfast.

Soon, the Loud house was stirring. In the hall, Leni was looking for her sunglasses, which Lisa pointed out were on her head. Lori was taking forever in the shower, like she always did. Sometimes Lynn wanted to pummel her.

While she was waiting for her turn in the bathroom, Lincoln came out of his room, and Luan shot out of hers. Lynn's eyes narrowed. That was too perfect to be a coincidence. She was waiting for him.

She cracked one of her dopey jokes, and Lincoln laughed. When Lynn realized her fists were balled, she unclenched them. _Chill_.

"Hey, bro," she said when Lincoln walked up. "I wanna work on your throw today. If you're up to it."

Lynn glanced at Luan, who looked like she wanted to say something but didn't.

"Alright," Lincoln said.

"Cool," Lynn smiled.

At breakfast, Lynn caught Luan looking at both her and Lincoln: She looked at Lincoln with doe eyes, and at her with the eyes of a predator. Lynn didn't know what he problem was, but she was already getting sick of it, and it wasn't even 8:30.

After breakfast, Lynn ran upstairs and grabbed her football. Outside, Lincoln was waiting in the backyard. When Lynn saw him, she got that queasy, sicky feeling in her stomach. "Hey, bro, ready to work on your throw?"

"Yep," he said. "You ready to teach me?"

"Very ready."

Inside, Luan stood by the back door, biting her lower lip. She felt...jealous? She chuckled. Why should she feel jealous? He was only playing football with Lynn. Of course, it was taking away from _her_ time with him, but that was no big deal, right?

Only she didn't like the way Lynn looked at him. There was a possessiveness in her eyes.

 _You're being paranoid,_ she told herself as she went up to her room. _Snap out of it._

Still, as she sat on her bed and tried to lose herself in a book, her thoughts kept turning back to her brother and her sister. She kept checking the clock, impatient. When would Lynn get her claws out and give him back?

"You alright?" Luna asked. She was sitting on her bed and strumming her guitar. When she spoke, Luan started.

"Yeah, sure, why do you ask?"

"You've been acting kind of...funny lately."

"It's nothing," Luan said, "it's just..."

Before she could stop herself, she blurted, "It's a boy."

 _Stupid!_

"Aw," Luna said with a grin, "a boy. What's he like?"

Luan sighed dreamily. "He's sweet and kind and caring and...and just perfect."

"He sounds totally rad. What's his name?"

Luan froze. "Uhhh...Timmy."

Luna looked thoughtful. "I don't know any Timmys. Where'd you meet him?"

"Internet."

"Ah. What's he look like?"

 _Ugh, stop asking questions!_

"He's cute."

"A cute, sweet boy will distract you."

"Yeah," Luan said. "I just...he doesn't know I like him and I want to tell him, but I'm afraid if I do and he doesn't feel the same way it might ruin our friendship."

Luna sighed. "Yeah, that's tough. But, I mean, if you feel that way about him, you should go for it."

Luna turned her sisters words carefully over in her mind. "You're right. It just worries me."

"I don't see why he wouldn't be into you. You're awesome. And if he isn't, that's his loss."

 _No,_ Luan thought sadly, _it's mine_.


	4. Tug of War

Lincoln snapped his arm back and threw the ball. Lynn jumped up and snatched it out of the air. He sighed. For the last hour he'd been trying to throw it over the fence into the neighbor's yard so that he could escape while she was getting it, but she incepted every single time. If anything, she was right. He _did_ need to work on his throw.

"You're getting better," she said, tossing the ball to him. He caught it. "You just need to but some _umph_ behind it."

"I'm trying," he moaned. "My arms hurts."

Lynn stopped. "Do you want to play soccer then? I'll go grab my ball." She started toward the back door.

"I'd rather take a break." He was hot and tired. The underarms of his shirt were dark, and his face was red. His throat was dry, and he kind of had to pee.

"Oh," Lynn said, looking disappointed.

Lincoln felt bed. He was the only one in the family who played with Lynn. Still, he needed a rest.

"Well...I'll see you later?" Her voice was hopeful, her eyes bright. Lincoln raised his eyebrow.

"Yeah, sure," he said. "I mean...we live in the same house."

Lincoln hurried inside before Lynn changed her mind and made him stay. In the yard, Lynn kicked grass and shook her head. _I'll see you later? Really? Stupid._

In the kitchen, Lincoln paused to enjoy the A/C. It wasn't much, but compared to the hot August sun outside, it was heavenly. He went over to the fridge, got a can of soda, and went into the living room. Lori was on the couch texting, and Luna was sitting in an armchair, tuning her guitar and looking frustrated.

"Red's not your color, bro," Luna said. For a moment Lincoln had no idea what she was talking about.

"Your face."

"Oh. I was playing football with Lynn."

Luna looked up then. "Still? Dude, you were out there for, like, three hours."

"I know," Lincoln said, and crossed to the bottom of the stairs. "I almost died."

At the top of the stairs, Luan was waiting. Lincoln jumped.

"Hey, Linc! Wanna watch a funny stand-up routine I found online? It's a riot."

He started to say no, but the puppy dog look on her face was too much. "Alright. Give me a minute."

In his room, he changed into fresh jeans and a clean shirt. When he went back into the hall, Luan was waiting. She looked up and smiled. "Ready?"

"Pretty much."

"Come on!"

She grabbed him by the hand and led him into her room. Her laptop was open on her bed. She sat, scooted close to the wall, and patted the bed beside her. "Bed seat in the house," she said, and chuckled.

"Good one," he said, and sat next to her. She hit play, and a video started.

"You're gonna love this."

A man in a bowtie talked about daily life. It wasn't very funny, though he got a few zingers in that made Lincoln smile. At one point, Luan rested her head on his shoulder. He glanced at her, then back to the screen. Ooookay.

"Are you tired?" he asked.

"No, just comfortable."

Lincoln tried to ignore the smell of her hair and her warmth. It made him feel funny.

Ten minutes into the video, Lynn walked by the door and backed up. "What's going on In here?" she asked sharply.

"We're watching a video," Luan said.

"Some dumb comedy routine?"

"Oh, go kick a ball."

"I'll kick something alright," Lynn grumbled, then disappeared down the hall.

"What's with you two lately?" Lincoln asked.

"It's nothing important," she said.

In the bathroom, Lynn smacked the door with her palm. They were laid up in there like boyfriend and girlfriend. It wasn't right.

It should be her.


	5. Three Hours

Three hours. Three hours since Lincoln left to go ride bikes with Clyde. Well, three hours and ten minutes, but who was keeping count? Not Luan. Nope. She was surfing the web, watching funny videos, and uploading videos to her website. Three hours and eleven minutes.

She sighed and shut the laptop. She had been typing the same caption on the same video for almost forty-five minutes. She glanced at the clock on the nightstand. Three hours and twelve minutes.

Ugh. She hated this. Lincoln was all she thought about now. It was like listening to the same song on repeat again and again and again and again and again. After a while you wanted to scream.

 _Just don't think about him._

Yeah, sure, great advice. Why don't you stop breathing while you're at it? And laughter? Who needs laughter?

She sighed. Three hours and fourteen minutes. What was taking him so long? Maybe she should text him and see if he was okay.

 _He's fine._

But what if he wasn't? What if something happened and he was hurt, lying in a ditch somewhere? The thought made her sick to her stomach. She whipped out her phone, but forced herself to put it down. He's fine. He's riding bikes with Clyde. They probably stopped off at the arcade or something. It happened all the time.

Still, she wanted to text him.

Three hours and fifteen minutes.

She needed to take a walk or something. She got up and went downstairs. Leni and Lori were watching a daytime soap opera. Outside, the sun was warm against her skin. Left, she told herself, she would go left. The park was in that direction, and the ice cream parlor. She had a few dollars, and ice cream sounded good about now.

Of course, the arcade was in that direction too. But she wasn't going there. Nope. She wasn't a big gamer. Nothing there for her.

Back inside, Lynn was going stir crazy. Lincoln had been gone for three hours and twenty minutes. It wasn't unusual for him to be gone that long, but suddenly, Lynn didn't like it. She didn't like it at all. She felt achy inside.

 _Forget it._

The thing was: She'd tried. She'd been trying all afternoon. Her mind kept turning back to him and Luan in bed. It was innocent, she knew that (they were just watching a video), but it made her mad nonetheless. Lincoln left directly after he finished with the video, spending his last half hour with _her_. It wasn't fair. He should have spent it with her.

 _You're being hormonal_.

Duh. She was going through puberty after all. She got her first period in June, and after that, she was a wreck for one week a month, angry one minute and sad the next. But she finished her period last week. There was no reason for her to be acting like this. Or feeling this way.

Was...was she in love with her brother?

No, yuck! She just liked spending time with him, that was all. She had nine sisters, and only one brother. It was nice getting him all to herself.

But was that _really_ it?

She glanced at her clock. Three hours and twenty two minutes. Damn it.

With a sigh, she got up and grabbed her phone from her dresser, where it was charging. She texted Lincoln: 'Hey bro whats up? You coming home soon?" She sat it back down, went to the bathroom, and checked it. No reply. Her heart sank. Okay. It's been, what, two minutes _if that_? You can't expect someone to be glued to their phone 24/7. He was busy. He'd text back.

She went over to her bed, sat down, and picked up a copy of _Sports Illustrated_. She tried to lose herself in an article on the NBA, but found herself reading the same sentence over and over again, and still not grasping what the words meant. She got up, crossed the room, and checked her phone. Nothing. She went back into her chat log. Six minutes. That was a long time. Then again, it wasn't.

With a sigh, she went back to her bed, picked her magazine back up, and read that same stupid sentence a dozen times before getting back up and checking her phone with trembling hands. No reply. Goddamn it.

What if he was dead? Or injured in a ditch somewhere?

She slammed her phone down and went back to her bed.

"What are you doing?" Lucy asked.

"Nothing."

"It doesn't look like nothing."

"I'm waiting on a text."

A small ghost of a smile touched Lucy's face. "From a boy?"

"No, why?" Lynn asked defensively.

"You're acting like it's a boy."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"No one obsessively checks their phone like think unless they're waiting to hear from a boy they like. You're starting to remind me of Lori."

"You don't know what you're talking about," Lynn said, "it's..."

She was going to say Lincoln, but stopped, something telling her not to say who it was.

"It's complicated," she said, and got up. She opened her phone, and saw a text from Lincoln. Her heart jumped into her throat.

"Be there in ten."

"Ok. See you then."

"That proves it."

Lynn looked up. Lucy was watching her. "What proves what?"

"That goofy little smile on your face proves it _is_ a boy."


	6. Fistfight

Luan walked aimlessly through Royal Woods, enjoying the warm sunshine and fresh air. She thought of funny jokes she'd heard recently, of things she needed to do, of anything, in fact, except Lincoln. As hard as she tried, though, he was always in her periphery, ready to step into her mind and take center stage the moment she let her guard down.

She cut through the park, telling herself she wanted ice cream, but the ice cream parlor was in the opposite direction. After fifteen minutes, she was standing outside of the arcade, scanning the parking lot for Lincoln's bike. She finally spotted it, and her heart skipped a beat.

As fate would have it, he and Clyde came through the door just then. Panicking, she ducked behind a blue postal box and crouched down. She looked around the corner, and saw them getting onto their bikes. They exchanged a few words, then took off in separate directions.

He was going home.

She jumped up and powerwalked the two miles back in twenty minutes. When she got there, she was red-faced and panting, beads of sweat trickling down her back. Lincoln's bike was leaned against the side of the garage. She hurried, and came into the backyard just as Lynn came outside wearing a baseball glove. Luan stopped in her tracks. A moment later, Lincoln came out with a bat, his shoulders slumped. He looked like baseball was the last thing on earth he wanted to do.

Lynn noticed her, and gave her a dirty look. Luan returned it.

"Hey, Linc, what's up?" she asked.

"We're about to play some baseball," Lynn said tightly. "So get lost. Unless you wanna join." Her tone was challenging.

Luan gritted her teeth. "Fine," she said. "Let's play."

"Alright," Lynn said, nodding. She slipped off her glove and tossed it to Luan, who caught it but almost fumbled. "You catch."

Luan put the glove on. It felt strange and clunky. She walked past Lincoln, giving him a warm smile, and crossed the yard until she felt she was at a reasonable distance. She stopped and turned. Lincoln stood on the sidelines, leaning on the bat, while Lynn strutted around, windmilled her arm, and made a show of getting ready.

"Just throw the ball!" Luan called.

Rolling her neck, Lynn wound up and threw as hard as she could. The ball screamed through the day like a white streak. Luan reached up with her gloved hand, but the ball missed by a good five feet, slamming into the stockade fence separating their property from old Mrs. Warren's with a thunk.

Lynn laughed. "You gotta _catch_ the ball, Amy Schumer."

Seething, Luan went over to the fence, bent down, grabbed the ball, and tossed it underhand. Lynn caught it, then instantly threw it back. Luan wasn't ready. The ball whizzed by so close to her face that she felt the wind.

"I wasn't ready!" she shouted.

"I don't think you'll _ever_ be ready, Seinfeld."

"Alright, you bench warming fumble-monkey," Luan snapped. She ripped off the glove and threw it aside as she went.

Lynn dropped the ball and started stalking toward her, rolling up her sleeves. "Oh, it's on, you unfunny little bitch."

"Guys!" Lincoln cried, his voice trembling. "Hey!"

No one threw the first punch; it was a mutual explosion of violence. Luan grabbed Lynn by the hair and yanked, Lynn palmed Luan in the left eye. Their feet tangled and they fell over, Luan landing on top. She pushed Lynn's head into the ground, her teeth bared. Lynn countered by punching her in the chest; the air left her in a rush.

Lincoln was rooted in place, his eyes wide.

"Stay away from Lincoln," Lynn growled, throwing Luan off of her and getting on top. She pinned her sister's arms to the ground.

" _You_ stay away from Lincoln," Luan said, and spat in Lynn's face. Lynn blinked, her guard momentarily down. Luan brought her right hand around and whacked her in the side of the head.

Suddenly, Lori grabbed Lynn by the back and dragged her off. Luan got to her feet, her fist balled, but Luna caught her under the arms and held her.

"What is going on here?" Lori demanded.

"She started it because she's a sore loser," Lynn huffed.

"She threw a ball at my face and meant to," Luan said, straining against Luna's grasp.

"Stand-up reject."

"Waterboy."

"Enough!" Lori said sharply. "I want both of you inside _now_. Go to your rooms and stay there until mom and dad get home. If you don't cause any problems until then I _might_ not tell them."

Lynn pulled away from Lori's embrace. "Watch your back."

"Watch _yours_."

Fuming, Lynn stormed inside, and Luna let Luan go.

"What was that about?" Lori asked.

"I told you," Luan said, rubbing her cheek. It was kind of sore. "She threw a baseball at my face on purpose."

"There's more to it than that," Luna said. "You guys have been giving off bad vibes for days now."

"Go to your room," Lori said, pointing at the house. "Luna, go with her and make sure they don't get into it again."

Lincoln was still standing where he'd been. Luan flashed a weak smile as she passed. "I'm sorry you had to see that," she said, "it wasn't _fight_ what I did. Get it?"

Lincoln forced a strained smile.

Alone in her room, Luan felt so bad for him that her stomach hurt. He was kind and gentle and sensitive, watching two of his sisters fight like that probably really bothered him.

She also felt kind of bad for Lynn. She was her sister, after all, and she loved her. She hoped she was okay.

Her regret was tempered by anger, though.

 _Stay away from Lincoln._

What did that mean? Did Lynn find out how she felt? Was she trying to "protect" Lincoln?

No. That wasn't it and she knew it, had known it since at least yesterday, but didn't want to admit to herself.

Lynn liked Lincoln too.


	7. The Deal

Lynn slammed the door and kicked it. Fucking bitch! How _dare_ she? She punched it, then kicked it again. Tears welled in her eyes.

"What's wrong now?" Lucy asked.

"Nothing." Lynn flopped down onto her bed and gazed up at the ceiling. Her heart was racing. The side of her head where Luan hit her kind of hurt.

 _If you weren't my sister..._

She took a deep breath through clenched teeth and blew it out.

 _Stay away from Lincoln_ , she'd said.

Lynn wasn't one to beat around the bush; she was not timid, she was direct and to the point. The last couple of days (maybe even longer) however, she _had_ been beating around the bush.

No more.

She was in love with her brother. Putting it that frankly disturbed her, but it was the truth. She loved Lincoln. She loved how considerate he was, how gentle he was.

 _Luan does too._

Anger surged through her. Why did Luan have to love him too? Why couldn't she have him all to herself? Was that too much to ask?

Apparently. Rhetorical questions would get her nowhere, though. She had to face the situation as it stood, and the way it stood now was this: She and Luan were in love with the same man, and she had no intention of backing off, and if Luan felt anything like she did, she wouldn't back off either.

Well, one of them had to, because Lynn sure as hell wasn't going to share.

 _What are you going to do, fight her every time you see her?_

Lynn didn't know. She loved her sister, even if right now she wanted to slap her across her stupid face. If they kept this up, they'd destroy their relationship, and that scared Lynn. She didn't want that.

But she wanted Lincoln, and Luan was standing in the way of that?

What to do, what to do.

She was still pondering that question at dinner. While the other kids talked and laughed, neither she nor Luan spoke. Lynn didn't even look at her older sister.

"So," dad said to Lori, "anything interesting happen while we were gone?"

Lynn and Luan both looked at her.

"Nope," she said without looking up from her plate. "Just the usual."

Lynn was grateful, and when Lori looked up, mouthed 'thank you.' Lori simply nodded, then nodded in the direction of the stairs, indicating that she wanted to see her after dinner.

When they were excused, Lynn followed Lori to her room. Inside, she shut the door and leaned against it. Lori sat on the edge of her bed and stared at her for a long time, making Lynn uncomfortable.

"What's this all about?" Lori finally asked.

"It's..." Lynn trailed off. She should tell the truth? She imagined telling Lori that she was in love with Lincoln, and her stomach turned. How would Lori react? She'd probably think she was disgusting, and truth be told, a week ago, she would have felt the same way.

Should she tell a version of the truth?

"Luan started it," she said in lieu of anything else.

"Lincoln says you were calling Luan names and that you kept throwing the ball when she wasn't ready. He said it looked like you were trying to hit her."

 _Damn it, Lincoln,_ she flashed, but she knew he meant well. He was so kind and thoughtful and generous and...

Lynn sighed. "Me and Luan like the same boy."

Lori blinked. "Really?" she asked, crossing her arms. The 'really-arm-cross' combo was something Lynn had seen from their mother a million times. It meant that she was disappointed. "You guys got into a fistfight over a _boy_?"

Shamefaced, Lynn nodded.

Lori sighed. She got up and crossed the room. "Move."

Lynn stepped aside, and Lori went into the hall. Lynn stuck her head out and watched as she went to Luan's door and knocked. _Great_ , she thought, hanging her head. Luan better not tell her it was Lincoln. Otherwise Lynn really _would_ pummel her, sister or not.

Luan came to the door, and Lori said, "Come here for a minute."

"Okay," Luan sighed in a tone that said she'd been expecting this.

Lori led her into the room. When she entered and saw Lynn, her eyes narrowed to slits. Lynn's initial reaction was to grit her teeth, but under her rage, she was hurt. Hatred was not something she wanted her sister to look at her with.

"Close the door," Lori said, and resumed her spot on the bed. Luan closed the door and turned to face her eldest sister.

"Lynn says you both like the same boy and that's what this is all about. Is that true?"

Luan glanced at Lynn, her lips pursed.

"Hey, I'm over here," Lori said. "Look at me."

Luan turned to her. "Yes," she admitted.

Lori nodded. "Do you realize that that is, like, the stupidest thing to fight over? You're sisters, for godsake."

"It's not as stupid as fighting over having the same dress," Lynn grumbled, and Lori shot daggers at her.

Instead of addressing Lynn's snark, she said, "You need to get together and figure something out, because no boy is worth ruining your relationship. Boys come and go, but family is forever."

Lynn hung her head, shame welling up within her. Next to her, Luan did the same.

"I love you guys," Lori said, standing, "and I'll help you if I can. Okay? I just don't want this going any further."

"It won't," Lynn said, and meant it.

"Yeah," Luan said.

"Good," Lori smiled. "Now go on."

In the hall, Lynn turned to Luan. Apologzing was not her strong suit. "I'm sorry I called you those names," she said. "And threw the ball at your face. I wasn't really trying to hit you, though. I just...I just wanted you to go away."

"I'm sorry I spit in your face."

They hugged.

"We need to have a serious talk though," Lynn said.

"Yes we do."

"Come on."

In Lynn's room, Lucy was still reading. "Alright, Count Dracula," Lynn said, "take a walk."

Without looking up from her book, Lucy got up and left the room. Lynn closed the door behind her and locked it. "On the bed."

She and Luan sat across from each other. For a long time, Lynn struggled to find words. After a while, all she could say was, "You love Lincoln too."

"I do," Luan replied.

Lynn sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. "Well...I'm not backing off." She forced herself to look her sister in the eyes.

"Neither am I," Luan said pointedly.

"I guess it's a stalemate."

Luan shrugged.

"How about this: We'll let Lincoln decide."

A shadow passed Luan's face. Lynn sensed her hesitancy.

"We'll give it a week, then we'll talk to him."

Luan sighed, relieved. "Alright." She was grateful for the delay. Telling Lincoln was such a big thing. It could blow up in her face and leave her family in rubble; she was not looking forward to it. On the other hand, she had a week to show him that she cared about him more.

Lynn was thinking along similar lines, which is why she suggested they wait. She was prepared to tell Lincoln her feelings right now, damn what may come, but she was worried that he'd pick Luan. This way, she had time to butter him up.

"Whichever one he picks, if he picks one at all," Lynn said, "that's it. No more fighting, no more hard feelings. Deal?"

"Deal."

They shook.

Across the hall, Lori sat on her bed, her being in turmoil. When the fight started earlier, she was in the kitchen getting a drink. She looked out the back door just in time to see Lynn and Luan tumble to the ground. Luna was sitting at the breakfast nook eating a sandwich and gazing out the window. She saw too. "Shit," she said.

They rushed out, Lori arriving first. Just in time to hear Luan say: _"No,_ you _stay away from Lincoln."_

She didn't stop to think about it until the situation was diffused and her sisters were no longer in danger of killing each other. _Stay away from Lincoln? What?_

"What happened?" she asked Lincoln after Luna escorted Luan inside.

Poor Lincoln was stricken. "I don't know. We were playing baseball and Lynn kept calling Luan names and throwing the ball when she wasn't ready."

She assumed it started with each of them wanting Lincoln for their own purposes, and escalated from there. Hell, she'd gotten into arguments with Leni when both wanted Lincoln to help them with something at the same time. As she thought about it, though, she realized that both Lynn and Luan had been acting strange for days. A few times at dinner last night, she caught Luan staring at him and grinning. Once she saw Lynn do the same thing. She ignored it because what was she supposed to think?

When Lynn said "Me and Luan like the same boy," her darkest (and faintest) suspicion was confirmed. They both liked Lincoln.

Lori shuddered. How...how can someone feel like that about their _brother_?

 _You should have confronted them_ , she thought.

Yes, she should have, but she couldn't. She just couldn't.

She had to do _something_ though. She couldn't tell mom and dad, because Lynn and Luan would both probably wind up in therapy, and Lori didn't want that. Then again...what if one of them had sex with him? And what if they got _pregnant_?

Lori shuddered again. Oh, God, that was so gross.

 _Lincoln's eleven_ , she reminded herself. If he could even get it up, he probably wasn't packing live ammunition. Still...

Just then, Leni came into the room.

"Leni," Lori said. "Can you get Luna for me? And Lisa too."

"Okay, but why?"

"We need to have a family meeting. But don't tell anyone else. Just Luna and Lisa. Got it?"

"Okay," Leni shrugged, and went back into the hall.

Five minutes later, Luna and Lisa were standing in front of the closed door. Leni was sitting on her bed. Lori was standing in the middle of the room, her hands behind her back. She thought long and hard about what she was going to say.

"What I say does not leave this room. Ever. You are the only three I trust with this, besides Lucy, but I don't want to involve anyone else unless we absolutely need to."

She paused. Thought. "Leni and Lisa, I'm sure you've heard about the fight Lynn and Luan had today."

Leni blinked. "I didn't hear that."

"I did hear that there was an altercation," Lisa said. "What inspired it is frankly of no interest to me."

"Luan and Lynn both have a crush on the same boy," Lori said. "Lincoln."

Luna's jaw dropped. Lisa remained stoic, save for a slight lift of the eyebrows. "I'm listening."

Lori laid out her case. When she was done, she sat heavily on the edge of her bed, feeling tired and drained.

"The circumstantial evidence is quite damning," Lisa said, "but there is no hard proof, and given the...magnitude of what you're proposing, we need actual proof lest we jump at shadows."

"We don't have..." Lori started, but stopped when a knock came at the door. "See who it is," Lori said.

Luna opened it.

Lucy.

"I need to talk to you," Lucy told Lori. "In private."

"About?" Lori asked.

"About Luan and Lynn."

Well," Lori said, "it just so happens that they're the reason we're all here."

"So you know?"

Lori held up her hand. "Come inside, shut the door, and tell us what you have."

"Okay."

Lucy came inside and closed the door. "Luan and Lynn came into mine and Lynn's room and kicked me out. I went into the vents to read, and overheard them talking. They're both in love with Lincoln."

Lori looked at Lisa. "That proof enough for you?"

"Oh, man," Luna muttered, rubbing the side of her head.

Lisa sighed. "Eyewitness testimony is better than hearsay, but not much. I'll take it, though."

"So...they're in love with Lincy?" Leni asked. "Like...love-love?"

"Yes," Lori said.

Leni scratched her head. "That's weird."

"Not _so_ weird," Lisa said. "Attraction among siblings is fairly common, especially during puberty. It's not exactly the norm, but it's not unheard of. Puberty, as I'm sure you, Lori, Leni, and Luna, are aware, is a strange time both physically and mentally. Emotions are heightened, emotions are _confused_."

"I'm not interested in _why_ they feel the way they do as much as I am in how to handle it," Lori said. "I don't want to go to mom and dad."

"Perhaps we don't need to handle it," Lisa said. "We're talking about two teenage girls, two teenage girls barely out of adolescence, who have a crush on a boy. That that boy is their brother is largely irrelevant. It's likely that they're not actually in love with him, but are confusing familial love with, well, love love. In which case, they'll have to discover that on their own."

"And what if they really _are_ in love with him?" Lori asked. "What are we supposed to do, let them have sex whenever they feel like it?"

"It's highly unlikely that a sexual relationship with develop, at least at the current time, assuming that Lincoln were to feel the same for one or both of them. When you were fourteen, Lori, you had crushes, correct?"

"Yes," Lori said, "but..."

"And how many of those crushes did you mate with?"

"Well, none," Lori said, "but..." she trailed off.

"You engaged in other sexual activities?"

Lori said nothing. When she was in the eighth grade, she jacked a boy off in the bathroom during lunch.

"We can do our best to keep them supervised," Lisa offered. "Of course, we cannot let them know we are watching them, or that we even know. If they believe they aren't being kept track of, they are less likely to be overly cautious. As you know, I had cameras installed in the house for research purposes, but had them deactivated. I will turn them back on and watch for anything suspicious."

"I want the rest of you to keep your eyes and ears open," Lori said. "If it looks like...something's going to happen, stop it. Ask to see one of them, follow them, whatever it takes, just don't let them know you're doing it on purpose. If you can, come to me."

Everyone nodded or muttered their agreement.


	8. House Fire

Lucy turned the page and started reading the next line. The novel's vampire hero was locked in battled with the werewolf antagonist. It was high stakes fight to the undeath, and...

"Can you knock it off?" Lynn asked.

She was lying on her side, facing the wall. Her phone was in her hands.

"Knock what off?" Lucy asked.

"The panting. You sound like a dog in heat."

"I'm not panting, I'm _breathing_."

"Well it's getting on my nerves."

Lucy and her sister hadn't spoken since Lucy returned from the meeting in Lori's room. Lucy didn't think Lynn suspected anything; she and Luan were still in their own little meeting when she came out.

Lucy could barely look at her older sister.

Returning to her book, Lucy read on, making a conscious effort to breathe quietly.

"You're still doing it!" Lynn cried, rolling over and facing her.

"I am not," Lucy said.

"Yes you are. You getting a sick thrill out of that little book? What, is someone dying and is it turning you on?"

"Put a gym sock in it."

"That's it!"

Lynn leapt out of bed. "I can't take this right now, Lucy." She grabbed her pillow and started out the door. "I'm going to bunk with Lincoln tonight."

It was at that moment Lucy realized she'd been had. Lynn intentionally provoked the fight so she'd have an excuse to go sleep with Lincoln.

"Wait! I'm..."

But Lynn was already gone.

"...an idiot." Sighing, Lucy got up and went to the door just as Lincoln opened his.

"Hey, bro," Lynn said happily, "me and Lucy are going at it again. Can I crash here?"

"Uhhh," Lincoln said, "I don't know. There's really no room."

Lynn sagged her shoulders. "Okay," she said. "I guess I'll just go sleep in the cold, hard, wet bath tub."

Lincoln bowed his head. "Alright," he mumbled, "come on in."

 _You're too nice, Lincoln,_ Lucy thought. Lincoln _was_ thoughtful and sweet. She could certainly see why a girl would fall for him (and any girl he liked was luckier than she could ever dream), but he was her brother. Forbidden love was fine, but this...this was too much.

After Lynn disappeared into Lincoln's room and shut the door, Lucy went to Lori's room and opened the door without knocking. Lori was sitting on her bed painting her toenails. She looked up, her brow furrowing.

"Uh, hello? Can you knock?"

"Lynn's sleeping in Lincoln's room tonight." 

Lori jolted. _"What?"_

Lucy told her what had happened, and Lori sighed. "Great. Come on."

In Lisa's room, they stood in front of a bank of cameras. On a screen before them, Lynn was manhandling Lincoln on the floor. "One, two, three, you're out!" she cried, rapidly tapping the carpet.

"I'm no authority on sports," Lisa said, "but I believe that was what is termed a 'fast count' in professional wrestling."

"Focus, Lisa," Lori said. "She's in there practically raping him."

"No she isn't," Lisa said. "They are both fully clothed and are engaging in a pastime they have shared many times in the past."

"Yeah, but this time it isn't innocent."

Lisa shrugged. "True."

"What do you suggest we do?" Lori asked.

"Have someone monitor the camera throughout the night," Lisa said. "I will voluntarily take the first shift, but I do require _some_ sleep, so I will need to be relieved eventually."

"I was thinking of going in there and dragging her out," Lori said. "Make it look like Lucy came to me about the argument."

Lisa considered that for a moment. "Direct confrontation is unwise at this juncture. Given the obvious intensity of Lynn's feelings, she is probably not thinking rationally, which could possibly lead to an unnecessary screaming match, or worse."

She was right. "Fine. What time do you want me to take over?"

Lisa checked the time on the computer. "It's 11:30 now, I should be good until 2."

"I should take the next shift," Lucy said. "It's my fault."

"No, it isn't. She would have left no matter what you did."

On the screen, Lynn sat on the bed and swung her legs. Lincoln plugged in his video game and handed Lynn a controller. Lynn was not a fan of video games, but right now, she looked as though there was nothing she liked more.

In the room, she rocked back and forth as, on the screen, she and Lincoln raced, him on the top half, her on the bottom.

"I'm gonna get'cha!" she cried.

"No you aren't!" He pushed a button, and his car turbo-boosted far ahead.

"Oh, no you don't."

Lynn's car rocketed forward too, but she slammed into a wall, flipped over, and exploded.

"Aw, man!"

Lincoln laughed and crossed the finish line. "Gotta try harder next time, sis."

"Oh, yeah?" she asked, cocking her head. "Let's go."

Lynn lost the next race, but only because she threw it. He laughed at her, and she came back in round three to blow him away. Literally, she bumped into his car and sent him spinning over the wall and into a river of bubbling lava.

"Did you have to kill me?"

"You left me no choice, bro."

Though Lincoln was hesitant when Lynn turned up at his door, he was actually having a lot of fun. It was strange that Lynn offered to play video games with him since they didn't like them, but he wasn't complaining.

At some point, Lynn scooted closer to Lincoln, and her knee rested against his side. Usually that would have bothered him, but right now he didn't mind. They started a new race, and Lynn got so into it, squirming back and forth, that she toppled over on top of him, knocking him back. He laughed. She laughed. They stared into each other's eyes. Lincoln felt funny, much the same way he had when Luan rested her head on his shoulder the other day.

Just then, someone screamed in the hall: "Fire!"

Lynn's eyes went wide. She jumped up and got tangled in the wire connecting the controller to the console.

"Come on!" she yelled, getting up.

Heart pounding, Lincoln followed her into the hall, where everyone was coming out of their rooms and looking sleepy, confused, and afraid.

"Fire?" Lori asked.

"Everyone downstairs!" dad screamed, and a mass of humanity flooded down the stairs and out the back door.

"Wait," mom said, "where's Luan?"

"Luan!" dad screamed, and darted back inside.

He found her sitting Indian style on her bed, her laptop open in front of her. "This comedy routine is _fire_."

Dad sighed. "Luan, you scared us half to death. We thought the house was burning down."

"Oh, I'm sorry," she replied innocently. "I didn't mean to scare you. I was just _burning_ to tell the world how great this is."

Dad mumbled and went back downstairs.

"Sorry to _flame_ you, Lynn," Luan said as she looked back down at the live feed of Lincoln's room. "But I can't just let my chances with Lincoln go up in smoke."

She giggled.

Outside, Lisa told Lori what she had seen on the camera right before Luan cried fire ("I assume she was watching as well, since she's always filming for comedy gold,"), and Lori took their mother aside. Lynn and Lucy are arguing. Lynn's staying in Lincoln's room again. They're making too much noise and, really, Lucy and Lynn are old enough to resolve their problems without storming out and sleeping wherever they fell, right?

Inside, Lynn started for Lincoln's room, but her mom stopped her. "In your room, young lady."

"But mom!"

"I don't want to hear it. You and Lucy are old enough that you should be able to work through your problems."

Dejected, Lynn turned to Lincoln. "See you tomorrow, bro."

Her spirits lifted a little when she saw that he was disappointed too.

In her room, she shut the door. She started to say something to Lucy, but thought better of it. Instead, she got into bed and buried her face in her pillow.

 _It was Luan. She's the one who told mom about our fight. She was probably watching me and Lincoln too. Freaking psycho._

It took a long time for Lynn to fall asleep.


	9. The War of the Louds

"Hey, Linc, wanna read some comics?"

It was 10:00am the next morning. Lincoln was sitting on his bed and thinking about last night when the door opened and Luan stepped in. "I got the new issue of Ace Savvy."

That was enough to get his mind off of Lynn. "You do? But it just came out yesterday."

"I know," Luan said, coming in and closing the door. "I went out and bought it this morning."

By this morning, she meant "5:00am" this morning. She biked all the way to the comic book store, getting there just as it opened.

"Alright," Lincoln said appreciatively. He pulled off his shirt and yanked down his pants. Luan blushed and looked down at the comic in her hand.

"Come on! Let's see that bad boy!"

Luan sat on the bed and laid on her back. "Come here."

Lincoln scooched next to her, and her heart started racing. She opened the comic and held it up. In the first panel, a man in tights battled a strange creature on a rooftop by moonlight.

"Who's that?" Luan asked.

"That's Dr. Freak. He's an alien."

"Oh. Cool."

After a few minutes, her arms started to hurt, so she rolled onto her stomach and bent her knees, kicking her feet back and forth. She sat the comic on the bed. Lincoln turned over and started reading. They were so close their bodies were touching. Luan was having trouble breathing.

"You like it?" she asked, looking at him.

"Yeah," he replied looking up, "thank you."

She felt a big, stupid grin spreading across her face. Lincoln smiled too. She giggled, and he chuckled.

"Luan Marie Loud!" a voice thundered up the stairs. "Get down here this instant!"

 _Uh-oh._

"I gotta go," she said, and got up. At the door, she looked back and smiled. "Enjoy your comic."

"I will," Lincoln said.

She bit her lower lip and went to see what was the matter.

Mom and dad were standing at the bottom of the stairs. Dad's arms were crossed and mom's hands were on her hips.

Her heart started pounding, and not in a good way.

"What's up?"

"Do you care to explain why _this_ was sticking out of your bag?" mom asked, holding up a pack of Marlboro Menthols.

Luan paled. "T-Those aren't mine!"

"Your bag is the black one with the smiley face, right?" dad asked. "The one that was sitting by the back door?"

"Yes," Luan started, "but..."

"So they just _crawled_ in there all by themselves?" mom asked.

"No, but..."

"Go to your room," dad said, pointing up the stairs, "you're grounded!"

Hanging her head, Luan turned and trudged up the stairs. At the top, she saw Lynn's door close, as if someone had been there watching...waiting for their plan to come to fruition.

" _Lynn,"_ Luan said, balling her fist.

In her room, Lynn laughed into her hand. You wanna play dirty? Let's play dirty. She went over to her bed and sat down. She grabbed her phone just as the text icon appeared on her screen. It was Luan.

"Tht was under handed."

Lynn typed a reply and sent it back. "Those things will give u cancer ya know."

"I thought we were goin to do this clean," came the response.

"Like yelling fire was clean."

"Like faking a fight with Lucy just so u could sleep in Lincolns room was clean. I heard u last night. U started that fight. On purpose. Now im grounded becuz of u."

Lynn started to type _All's fair in love and war,_ but stopped. Okay, maybe it _was_ kind of shitty of her to do what she did, and maybe Luan was justified in what _she_ did. Suddenly, she felt like shit. But was it _really_ that bad? They didn't exactly set out any ground rules last night. Just no more fistfights, and respect Lincoln's decision when he made one.

No, no, it _was_ bad. She was just starting to type a reply when Luan texted her again. "O brother I have a visitor. GTG ;)"

Luan looked up from her phone. Lincoln was standing in the doorway.

"Hey," she said.

"Hey," he replied and held up the comic. "We didn't finish."

"No we didn't," she grinned.

He came over and belly-flopped on the bed. She rolled onto her stomach, and together, they finished the comic. Neither one spoke; they both simply enjoyed each other's company. At one point, Luna came in and froze. Lincoln, sensing her, looked over his shoulder. "Hey, Luna," he said.

"H-Hey, bro," she said, "I was just grabbing my axe." She grabbed her guitar and forced a smile. "Heh. Got it."

Next door, Lynn pressed her ear against the wall. She could hear voices, but they were muffled.

"What are you doing?" Lucy asked, appearing from nowhere. Lynn jumped a foot.

"I thought I heard a mouse," she said, then made a show of walking around and pressing her ears to all the walls. "Nope. Guess I was mistaken."

"Riiight," Lucy said, turned around, and walked out.

Lynn sighed. She had to get him away from Luan. But how? 

An idea struck her then.

Forty-five minutes later, she serendipitously caught Lincoln coming out of the bathroom. She was red-faced and panting. "Hey!" She bent over and tried to catch her breath.

"Are you alright?" he asked, rushing over.

"I'm...fine...look."

She held something up. "Wanna...watch...with me?"

Lincoln took it. "Starship Groupers the complete series! With deleted scenes and bonus footage! Yes I do!"

Lynn looked up. Luan's door was cracked. A pair of narrow eyes peered out. Lynn stuck her tongue out.

"Let's go," she said, grabbing Lincoln by the hand.

Downstairs, she popped one of the four discs into the DVD player and hit 'play.' She jumped on the couch next to Lincoln. "I know you like this..." she was about to say _junk_ ... "so I said, 'I'll get my favorite brother a present.'"

"I'm your only brother."

"Oh? Did I say 'brother'? I meant 'sibling.'" She smiled and laid her head in Lincoln's lap. He tensed, then relaxed. When his hand rested on her head, she almost melted.

They watched two episodes (Lynn wasn't paying attention, she was too focused on Lincoln) before dad stormed into the room. Instinctively, Lynn shot up.

"Lynn Loud Jr.," dad said. "What is this?"

He held up a baseball.

"My lucky ball," she said, blinking. What was he doing with it? It was supposed to be in her room...

 _Luan._

"And what happened to the shed window?"

"Nothing! I mean, I didn't do anything wrong."

"Yeah, dad," Lincoln said, "she was here with me."

"Stay out of this, Lincoln. You broke yet another window with your careless ball tossing. You are grounded."

"Dad!"

"Now!"

Lynn jumped up and stormed to her room. She slammed the door and flopped onto her bed. She grabbed her phone from the nightstand to send Luan a text, but Luan had already sent _her_ one.

"Paybacks a bitch."


	10. First Kiss

Lynn and Luan had been grounded for two days, and Lincoln missed them. Sitting alone in his room and trying to focus on a comic, he pictured Luan's sunny smile, and his heartbeat quickened. He remembered running his fingers through Lynn's soft, silky hair, and his breath caught in his throat. Why couldn't he get them out of his mind? And why did he feel like he felt when he was around Cristina, the girl he had a crush on at school? Did he...?

 _No,_ he thought, shoving that thought away and flipping to the next page. That was impossible. They were his sisters! Why would he...like...them?

He thought of Lynn, then Luan. His stomach rumbled. He tossed the comic aside and looked up at the ceiling. He was restless, sick. He got up, went to his door, then came back and sat on the bed.

Where was he going?

He ran his hands through his hair. Nowhere. He didn't want to go outside, he didn't want to go down to the living room, he didn't want to read a comic or ride a bike or play a video game or any of the other things he liked.

He wanted to see his sisters.

He picked up his phone and sat it back down again. He took a deep breath and looked around the room. It was cramped, the walls were closing. It was too warm. He picked his phone back up and drew up his contacts list.

LYNN

LUAN

Which one did he want to see? Both, but, for some reason, he knew that he couldn't see both.

Finally, he tapped LUAN and sent her a text: "Can u come here? Make sure no1 sees you."

He sat the phone down and laid back in bed, tenting his hands on his chest. He was reaching for the phone when the door opened and Luan slipped in, closing it quickly behind her.

"Perfect timing," she said, turning around. "Luna just left. What's up?"

What _was_ up?

"The sky, airplanes," he said.

Luan giggled like that was the funniest thing she had ever heard. "Nice one, but I mean what's you with you? Why'd you want to see me?"

Lincoln sat up. "I just miss you. I really haven't seen you or Lynn much over the last couple of days."

"Yeah," Luan said, sitting on the edge of the bed, "being grounded sure is the pits. It's a pain in the grass. Get it? Ground, grass?"

It was Lincoln's turn to laugh too long and too loud. She smiled at looked down at her lap.

"Were those really your cigarettes?" he asked.

Luan shook her head. "No. Someone put them in my bag."

"Who?"

Luan looked at her brother, then back at her lap. "Lynn."

"Why?" he asked. "What's the deal with you two?"

Luan's face turned a bright scarlet. She looked at Lincoln, at her lap, and at Lincoln again.

Lincoln scooted closer. "You can tell me," he said, "I'm your brother. You can tell me anything."

She looked at him, her face turning scarlet. Her heart was crashing, her stomach in knots. Lincoln could sense her distress, so he reached out and touched her cheek. She looked at him again, her eyes shining. She leaned closer, and he met her lips with his. Her tongue darted coyly into his mouth, and his eyes opened wide. Was...was that supposed to happen?

He quickly realized that he didn't care. The taste of her cherry lip balm and the warm, wet feeling of her mouth was intoxicating. He stroked her face, and he felt her tremble. The kiss broke, and they both panted for air. She smiled at him.

"I love you, Lincoln," Luan said, then sighed and looked away. "And so does Lynn."

Lincoln blinked.

"That's why we've been fighting lately."

He sat back and tried to process what his sister had just told him. As he thought, he absently licked his lips, thrilling at the taste of Luan's mouth. They both loved him.

In that moment, he realized that he loved them both back.

"Lincoln?" Luan asked, leaning forward, "are you okay?"

"Yeah," he said, "I just...I don't know how to take that."

"We were going to wait a week and tell you so you could decide, but she started a fight with Lucy just so she could come sleep in here, and I yelled 'fire' because I was watching you guys and you looked like you were about to..."

"Kiss?"

Luan nodded.

Lincoln sighed.

"I...I'll understand if you need some time to wrap your head around this." She stood up. "I should go."

"Wait," he said, grabbing her by the wrist. "I..." he stopped. What? He couldn't love both of his sisters.

He stood up, wrapped his arm around Luan's waist, and kissed her again. She melted into him, her knees shaking. Their hearts pounded in time.

Lincoln pulled away. "See you at dinner," he said, and flashed a wan smile.

"I hope," she smiled.

She left, closing the door behind her, and Lincoln sat heavily on the edge of the bed, putting his head in his hands.

In her room, Lisa leaned back from the monitor and thoughtfully bit the inside of her lip. Watching the scene unfold, she knew what was going to happen probably before they did, but instead of calling Lori or rushing in to diffuse the situation herself, she leaned closer, adjusting her glasses. When their lips locked, she pressed her face to the screen. Fascinating. Sweet, too, she hated to admit. She assumed that this was Lincoln's first kiss, given his age; she highly doubted he and Ronnie Anne had gotten that far into their blossoming relationship. With Luan, it was a toss-up. As far as Lisa could remember, there had never been a boy in her life. Quite possible they had shared their first kiss together. Sociologically speaking, one's first kiss one of the primary introductions to adulthood. Interesting to watch it happen.

She sighed and looked at the screen. Lincoln looked despondent, and she pitied him. She looked over her shoulder, made sure no one was watching, and rewound the video. After ten minutes, the kiss, and indeed Luan's very presence, had been erased. To any but the most trained eye, it seemed as if Lincoln had simply sat up and put his face in his hands.

She then exited out of the computer and got up. She had a poop study that needed to be finished...


	11. A Different Kind of Love

Lynn had been looking forward to dinner all day, because that's the only time should could see Lincoln. When mom called up the stairs, she jumped up and went out the door like a shot. In the hall, she paused and waited for Lincoln to come out of his room. When he saw her, he started.

"Hey, bro," she said, and punched his arm twice in rapid succession.

He rubbed the spot where she hit him and smiled weakly. "Hey, Lynn."

"I miss you, man," she said.

"I miss you too."

At the table, she kept sneaking furtive glances at him. Once or twice he was looking thoughtfully at Luan, which made Lynn's blood hot, but then he'd look at her and smile, and it was okay.

When dinner was over, she went to her room and hoped against hope that he would come to her. He didn't, and she felt like crying. Then, just after eight, he texted her.

"R u ungrounded tomorrow?"

"Yea," she shot back.

"Wanna ride bikes?"

"Sure!"

She fell asleep quick and peaceful that night. In the morning, she woke in a golden bar of sunshine. Birds sang outside her window and everything was perfect. At breakfast, Lincoln looked cruddy, his face pale and dark bags under his eyes. Her heart twisted, and she couldn't stop herself from slapping her hand on his forehead and checking to see if he was running a temperature. "You okay, bro?" she asked.

"I'm fine," he said, and looked into her eyes. "I just have a lot on my mind."

She flinched. _Luan._

Her appetite was suddenly gone, and she sat impatiently while everyone else ate. God, did it always take this long? You'd think these people had no lives.

When, finally, it was over, she jumped up from the table and helped wash the dishes, flying through them so fast that she was certain she left bits of food stuck to them. Done, she found her mother in the living room. Lori and Leni were sitting on the couch watching TV.

"Me and Lincoln are gonna ride bikes."

"Alright," mom said.

Leni and Lori exchanged a strange look that she didn't like. Upstairs, she found Lincoln in his room.

"Ready, bro?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said, pulling on his shoes.

She turned just as Luan's door closed. The little bitch was probably watching and listening.

Outside, the day was bright and hot. She grabbed her bike from the garage and pedaled to the bottom of the driveway. She looked back and watched Lincoln mount his bike.

"Where do you want to go?" she asked as he pulled up beside her.

"I was thinking the park."

"Okay. Race you there!"

She took off, and Lincoln followed, laughing. "Hey, that's cheating!"

"No it's not!" she called back.

From Franklin Avenue, they turned onto Delmont Place, which runs through the heart of Royal Woods. The park bordered the west bank of the Chippewa River, a vast, rolling green whose western half was dominated by dense forest. Lynn stayed in front most of the way, but Lincoln pulled ahead a block from the park. He glanced at her, his teeth gritted in determination, and pedaled harder, zooming by and cutting her off, forcing her to slam on her brakes.

"Oh, you little cheat!"

She was close behind when he flew through the main gate and hung a sharp left onto one of the main bike trails winding through the park. The lane was narrow and paved, tall pine trees looming on either side, blocking out all but a few errant rays of sun. Lynn got to within two feet of Lincoln, but couldn't pass. She slacked her speed so that she wouldn't plow into him if he stopped suddenly, and looked for a chance to get by. She finally got it when the trail emptied out in a wide field flanking the river. She went left, leaning her weight so that she was nearly on her side, and shot by. She looked over her shoulder saw Lincoln falling fast behind, and laughed.

"Lynn!" he cried, his voice edged with fear.

She turned, and a tree was hurtling toward her fast. Heart jumping into her throat, she cut left, and missed it, but dumped the bike, launching over the handlebars. For a long brief moment that seemed to last forever, she was soaring through the air, her arms and legs thrashing. Just before she hit the ground, she tucked, and the impact was muted, most of it absorbed by the tall, shaggy grass. The wind left her in a rush, and she rolled, coming to rest with her butt in a puddle.

"Lynn!" Lincoln was screaming.

She tried to reply, but could only issue a breathless gasp. She took inventory of her injuries. Her back and butt ached, and her head kind of hurt, but otherwise she was okay.

"Lynn!"

Suddenly Lincoln was on his knees next to him, his sweet face filling her vision. She blinked.

"Lynn! Are you okay?"

"Yeah," she finally managed and sat up. She tittered. "But my butt's wet."

For some reason that struck Lincoln as funny, and he laughed and laughed. Lynn smiled too.

"I was so worried," he said, "I thought you were going to break your neck."

"So did I," she admitted. "But I'm okay, I promise."

"Are you sure? You should let me check you out."

"Gee, Lincoln, I said I'm fine." His concern touched her though. He was so sweet.

"Okay," he said. "I was just scared."

 _Screw it_. Lynn grabbed his face in both her hands and kissed him, shoving her tongue into his mouth. He fought against her for the briefest second, but then gave in and kissed her back, urgently. She pulled him down on top of her, and he pressed his body into hers. A strange but not unpleasant quiver rippled between her legs.

Lincoln thrust his hands into her hair and lashed her tongue with his. He accidentally bit her bottom lip, and she moaned. Her heart was jackhammering in her chest. He was like an animal, and she liked it.

Finally he pulled away, panting. Lynn just looked up at him as she tried to catch her breath.

"Lincoln," she said, "the reason me and Luan..."

"I know," he said simply.

She blinked. "What?"

"Luan told me yesterday."

She sat bolt upright. "That bitch, we were supposed to wait..."

"I know that too. Don't be mad. I'm glad she told me."

"Well?"

He sat down next to her and drew a heavy breath. Lynn had the feeling that she wouldn't like what he had to say.

"I don't know," he said. "I...I just...it's a lot to handle at once, you know?"

"I guess," she said.

"I...I love both of you."

She looked at him. "No, you have to make a decision. It's got to be one or the other."

"I know," he moaned and rubbed his forehead. "My heart is pulling me in two different directions, though."

Lynn drew her knees to her chest and sighed. "Which direction is the strongest?" she asked.

"That's just it, neither one is stronger than the other. I guess...I don't know, I've always loved all you guys equally, so right now, it's the same, only it's a different kind of love. Do you know what I mean?"

Lynn nodded. She did. He was always so measured and insightful. Lisa may be a math and science genius, but when it came to people, Lincoln had her beat by a couple dozen football fields.

"I just don't think I can share you, Linc. Maybe I'm selfish, but I want you, and I don't want her even _near_ you."

"I know," he said sadly. "It wouldn't be fair to either of you. But you have to realize where I'm at."

"I know where you're at," Lynn said. "Or I can imagine. I'm not pushing you to decide right now, and no matter what you choose, I'll always love you."

Lincoln smiled and put his arm around her shoulders. She snuggled close to him and rested her head on his chest. His heart beat against her ear in a steady, soothing rhythm. A beam of sunlight fell upon them, warming her skin, and a cool breeze blew through the field. Lynn didn't ever want this moment to end, but soon Lincoln stirred.

"We should probably get back," he said.

She moaned. "But I'm comfy."

"I know," he said, "me too."

He got up and they walked side-by-side to where her bike had come to rest. She picked it up and climbed on.

"Glad it's not busted," she said, and Lincoln kissed her. This time it was soft and slow and sweet.

When their lips parted, she let out an involuntary giggle.

"I'm glad _you're_ not busted," he said, "now come on. Race you back!"


	12. Prelude to Torment

Lori sat impatiently on the couch, glancing from the front window (she had pulled the curtains back) to the clock on her phone. It had been over an hour since Lincoln and Lynn biked off together, and she was beginning to wonder if bikes were _all_ they were riding. Next to her, Lisa was busy with some arcane project that Lori couldn't even begin to comprehend.

"If they're not back soon, I'm going after them."

"You never showed this level of concern when Lincoln went off with Ronnie Anne."

"This is different."

"Ultimately, how?" Lisa looked at her pointedly. "The main difference as I see it is you've intimately known Lynn her entire life, whereas you have not known Ronnie Anne anywhere near as long. Who's to say she's not a slut?

Lori blinked at her sister's vulgarity.

"I trust Lincoln and Lynn, or Lincoln and Luan, more than I trust Lincoln and Ronnie Anne."

Lori opened her mouth to argue, but closed it again. She had a point. Lynn was a good kid. So was Lincoln. And Luan.

On the other hand, she suspected Lynn and Luan both felt much more strongly about Lincoln than Ronnie Anne did, and when feelings are _that_ intense, things are libel to happen. She said as much, and Lisa shrugged.

"So what? Are you going to shadow every one of your siblings when they begin to date? Are you going to come home from wherever you are to follow me around once I begin to see someone?"

"What's with you?"

Lisa sighed. "I've simply come to realize that this is none of our business. In all other matters our family has taken a liberal approach. We're expected to work out our own problems. Whatever there is between Lincoln and Luan, or Lynn, or both, it's up to them to figure out. Not you, not me."

"They're kids!" Lori cried. "They don't know what they're doing! What if things go too far? They'll have to live with it for the rest of their lives. I don't want that."

"I'll keep that in mind the next time you and Bobby go out. You're just kids, and God forbid you make a mistake and have to live with any subsequent consequences."

"You know what? Screw you, Lisa." She got up and the front door opened. Lynn limped in, her face dirty and scratched up. Her arm was slung over Lincoln's shoulder.

Lori's heart jumped. "Oh, my God, what happened?"

"I wrecked my bike," Lynn said, "then I made the mistake of trying to race Lincoln home without realizing my ankle was messed up."

Lincoln closed the door with his foot and helped Lynn to the couch, where she flopped down.

"Let me see," Lisa said. She came over and examined Lynn's ankle. "It's just a sprain," she said. "Put ice on it."

Lincoln rushed into the kitchen to grab an icepack, and returned. Lynn took it with a bright smile.

"Well?" Lori asked. "What happened? How did you wreck?"

Lynn shrugged. "Me and Linc were racing, I looked back to gloat, and almost hit a tree, but I swerved and went over the handlebars instead."

"Real smart, Lynn."

She shook her head and went upstairs.

"What's her problem?" Lynn asked Lisa.

"She likes to intrude in other people's business."

Lynn chuckled. "Tell me something I _don't_ know."

"I gotta use the bathroom," Lincoln said. "Are you okay for a minute?"

"I'm a big girl," she said, "go on."

Upstairs, he relieved himself. When he opened the door, Luan was standing there. He jumped back and uttered a small scream.

"Sorry, Linc, I didn't know you were in here."

That was a lie. She did.

"That's okay," he said, "I just wasn't expecting a faceful of Luan."

Luan giggled. "It wasn't that bad, was it?"

"No," he said, "it was nice."

She blushed. Getting serious, she said, "I suppose you talked to Lynn...about _this_."

"Yeah," he admitted, feeling a rush of guilt, "I did."

"And?"

Lincoln sighed. "You're not going to like it anymore than she did."

"Something's better than nothing."

Leni came out of her room then. When she saw them, she brightened. "Hey, Lincy, can I use the bathroom?"

"Yeah," she said, moving. Luan nodded toward her room and Lincoln followed her. Leni watched after them for a moment. There was something about them. Something she was supposed to remember.

It wasn't until she was sitting on the toilet that it struck her.

In Luan's room, Luan laid on the bed, propping her face in her hand. Lincoln sat next to her.

"So?"

Lincoln didn't reply for a long moment. He really didn't want to go through this again.

"I love you, Luan," he said. "But I love Lynn too."

Lincoln didn't see the expression on his sister's face, but he felt the atmosphere darken ever so slightly. "Like I told Lynn, I love all my sisters equally. I always have. Now it's...it's just a different kind of love."

She didn't reply.

"Are you mad?"

"No," she said. "Disappointed, maybe. I was hoping you wanted _me_."

"I do," Lincoln said, turning. "It's just...I don't know. I'm so confused right now." He turned away and sighed.

Luan sat up and wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him tight. She kissed his neck, and then his earlobe.

"I know. The heart's a funny thing. And not funny ha ha."

He turned his head, and they kissed.

Just then, a knock came at the door. "Lincy! I need you!"

It was Leni.

Ugh.

Lincoln caressed his sister's face and lost himself in her.

"Lincy! Like, now!"

Luan pulled away. "Go see what she wants."

At the door, Leni flashed a strained smile. "There's a spider in the bathroom. Can you kill it for me?"

"Alright," he sighed, following her, "show me where it was."

She pointed to the sink, and he looked, but didn't see anything. There was nothing on the toilet, in the bath tub, or the floor.

"I don't see it."

"Oh. Maybe he crawled away."

"Maybe."

Lincoln started back down the hall. He paused at Luan's room. Leni was standing by her door, watching.

Lincoln smiled at Luan, then went downstairs.


	13. Torment

Lincoln Loud woke panting and covered in sweat, his heart thundering in his chest. He sat up, glanced at the clock (it was nearly 5am), and took a deep breath. In his dream, he made his decision, and the losing sister broke down in tears and never spoke to him again. At one point it was Luan, but with the fluidity of dreams, it was suddenly Lynn. Either way, the one he passed over wouldn't speak to him, wouldn't even look in his direction. It was like he didn't even exist. And at night, he could hear the gentle sound of her crying.

He sat up, snapped on his beside lamp, and ran his fingers through his hair.

 _No, you have to make a decision¸_ Lynn told him. _It's got to be one or the other._

Did she realize what kind of position he was in? Sure, she said she would love him regardless, but he _knew_ that things would change between them if he went with Luan, just as things would change between him and Luan if he went with Lynn. Lincoln loved his sisters. He loved their quirks and their personalities. He even loved their flaws. The thought of one shutting him out of their life made him want to puke.

At the end of the day, though, he had to make a decision. Luan or Lynn. He loved Luan's sunny smile and her musical laugh, and he loved Lynn's strength and daring. He loved Luan's eyes, and Lynn's eyes. He loved the way they both smelled and tasted and felt in his arms.

He could love both of them. Why not? Theirs was a special bond. Neither was just some girl. She was his sister and he loved her on more than one level.

Lynn, however, wouldn't let him love Luan, and Luan would not let him love Lynn.

He flopped back against the pillow and tried to sleep, but couldn't. Finally, he got up and started his day, his head pounding and his stomach sick. When he came into the dining room, Lynn and Luan both looked up at him and smiled (why did Lori roll her eyes?). He smiled back and sat down. He didn't want anyone to worry, so he forced down his breakfast even though the thought of food disgusted him.

"You wanna play some video games, bro?" Lynn asked when the meal was done.

"Or would you rather watch a science fiction movie?" Luan asked. "I found a couple really good ones on Netflix last night."

Lynn shot her a dirty look.

"I just want to lay down," he said.

"Oh," Lynn said. "Okay. You feeling alright?"

"I thought you looked pale," Luan added. "Are you running a fever?"

"No, I just have a lot on my mind."

Neither one responded to that.

In his room, Lincoln laid in bed and grappled with the thoughts racing through his head, and the fears gnawing his heart. He took out his phone and went through the many photos of his sisters, paying special attention to the ones of him and Lynn and him and Luan. Lynn pinning him to the ground, both of them laughing; Luan pretending to be a mime while he humored her and faked being trapped in a box. He tried to imagine a world where Lynn never asked him to play sports with her, or where Luan never told him corny jokes or pulled pranks on him, and felt like his soul was being squeezed in a vise. Yeah, he complained when Lynn tackled him from nowhere and when Luan dumped water on him, but without either one, his life would be so much darker.

He put the phone away, thoroughly depressed. His stomach gurgled, and he rolled onto his side. How long could he put off making this decision? A week? Surely no more than that.

 _Better to just get it over with._

Yeah, but he was scared shitless.

Speaking of shit, his stomach was clenching. He got up, went to the door, and eased it open. Thankfully, neither Lynn nor Luan were in the hall. Moving quickly and hoping neither saw him or called to him, he darted to the bathroom. His stool was loose and watery, as it usually was when he was under great stress. Sitting up became too great a burden, so he wiped and went back to his room. He checked his phone, and saw that he had a text from Lynn. His stomach clenched again.

"R u really ok?"

He started to respond that he was, but decided to be honest.

"Not really. Im so stressed over this. Im terrified of losing you or Luan."

A few minutes later, his phone buzzed, and he groaned.

"Plz dont worry about that Lincoln. I told u I would love u no matter what and I meant it. Im sure Luan feels the same way."

"I know but things will change between us weather u or her want them too or not. And that scares me so bad."

Less than a minute later, his door opened and Lynn slipped in. His stomach turned.

Her expression was one of concern and sadness. She came to him and sat on the bed. She laid her hand on his chest, and he reached out and touched her bare knee. Her warmth was comforting.

"Lincoln," she said softly. "I love you. I love you in so many ways. I love you so deeply that I could never imagine not having you in my life. You're the best brother a girl could ask for. You're sweet, caring, thoughtful, selfless. You won't lose me, Lincoln, because I couldn't stand to lose _you_."

Lincoln broke down and cried.

Lynn slipped onto the bed and laid next to him, holding him in her arms as his body trembled.

"It's okay," she whispered. "You're stuck with me, Loud. Like it or not."

His sobs eventually tapered off to whimpers, then to soft snores. Lynn held him for a long time, tears standing unshed in her own eyes. Finally, she blinked them away and got up. In her room, she texted Luan and told her what happened.

"He thinks we're going to hate him if he chooses the other one. U need to reassure him that ur not going to hate him"

Lincoln woke to his sister's soft touch. Luan smiled down at him, her hand warm against his cheek. Red late afternoon light fell through the window, painting the walls.

"Hey, sleepyhead. Why couldn't Dracula's wife get to sleep?"

Lincoln blinked, his mind still foggy. "Why?" he croaked.

"Because of his coffin!"

Lincoln smiled despite himself.

"I want you to know something, Lincoln," she said, seriously, and looked him in the eyes. "I love you and that will never change. No matter what. You're such a beautiful person, Lincoln, and I want you by my side for the rest of my life. As a brother, or as more, in the end, as long as I have you, I don't care."

She leaned down and kissed him on the forehead. "Are you hungry?"

Lincoln shook his head. "Tell mom I'm sick."

"Okay."

She stroked his face one more time and got up.

Alone, he turned her words over in his mind. She was so wonderful. And so was Lynn.

His stomach gurgled.

Maybe he felt reassured that neither of his sisters would hate him, but, ultimately, he felt no better. He had a hard choice to make. And he knew, _knew,_ that the sister he didn't choose would be hurt, and after the past couple days, and today especially, the thought of hurting Lynn or Luan twisted him in two.

He sought sleep that night, but did not find it. Neither did he find peace.

Lori watched as Luan slipped out of Lincoln's room, looked around, and rushed to hers. Less than half an hour ago, Lynn had done the exact same thing. She would have let it go if it was just one, but not both.

She went to Lisa's room and opened the door. Lisa was busy at her lab, observing something in a test tube and taking notes down on a clipboard.

"Luan and Lynn were just both in Lincoln's room."

"And you're in mine," Lisa said without turning. "What's your point?"

"Cut the shit, Lisa. I want to see the tape."

Lisa sighed and stood up straighter. Lori thought she was going to argue, but instead she went over to the computer, typed something on the keyboard, and brought up the feed of Lincoln's room. He was lying on his side, his knees drawn up to his chest. The picture quality was good; Lori could see his misery, and it hurt her heart.

Lisa rewound to the point where Lynn came in and hit PLAY.

On screen, Lynn came to Lincoln's bed and sat, resting her hand on his chest. Lori bent over Lisa's shoulder.

"Turn it up."

Lisa raised the volume.

" _Lincoln...I love you. I love you in so many ways. I love you so deeply that I could never imagine not having you in my life. You're the best brother a girl could ask for. You're sweet, caring, thoughtful, selfless. You won't lose me, Lincoln, because I couldn't stand to lose you."_

Lincoln started to cry, and Lynn held him. Soon, he was asleep.

Lisa fastforwarded. Luan came in and sat down.

" _I want you to know something, Lincoln. I love you and that will never change. No matter what. You're such a beautiful person, Lincoln, and I want you by my side for the rest of my life. As a brother, or as more, in the end, as long as I have you, I don't care."_

"Satisfied?" Lisa asked.

Lori turned away from the screen. "Yeah," she said.

In her own room, she sat on her bed and thought long and hard.


	14. Taking One for the Team

Two days (or had it been three?) Lincoln languished in agony. He hardly left his room, didn't eat, and, Lynn suspected, didn't sleep. His face was pale and haggard, his eyes hollow and dark. She wanted to take him in her arms and kiss him, but he needed space.

On Tuesday night, she woke with the urge to pee, and went out into the hall. From behind Lincoln's door, she heard the soft sound of crying, and her heart broke. She crawled back into bed, and tried to sleep, but couldn't. In the morning, Luan looked like shit, her eyes puffy and her face wan. She must have heard too. Or watched via camera.

On Wednesday, Lincoln didn't show for breakfast for a third day in a row, and Lynn decided it was enough. After chores were done, she grabbed Luan. "Let's see if we can cheer him up."

He was lying bed, staring up at the ceiling, when they entered. He looked up and smiled weakly at them. "Hi," he said.

"Hey, Linc," Luan said.

"Hey, bro. How's it going?"

"I've been better," he said. "But in ways, I guess I've been worse."

The empty quality of his voice saddened Lynn. Looking at him lying there, tormented, miserable, she sighed. She took Luan by the arm and led her into the hall. "We'll be right back."

She shut the door and looked at her sister. "Luan, this is killing him, and it's killing me to watch. And to know I'm part of the reason." Tears came to her eyes. Luan nodded, her face flushed.

"Me too," she said.

"If this is what it's doing to him...it's not worth it."

Luan looked up at her, a quizzical expression on her face.

"You have him."

"Lynn..."

"I mean it. It was unfair of us to put him in this position to begin with, okay? And I want to make it right. I don't care about being with him, Luan. I just want him to be happy."

She fought back tears. Luan nodded.

"Come on."

When they returned, Lincoln was sitting on the edge of his bed and looking down at his feet. He glanced up.

"Lincoln," Lynn said, and sighed. She sat next to him and put her arm around his shoulder. "I love you, Lincoln. I can't do this to you. You don't deserve it."

Her vision blurred, and she hugged her brother close. "I want you to be happy with Luan."

"Lynn," he started, sounding stricken.

"Honest. I've come to realize that the only thing I care about is you being happy, and you're not happy, and you won't be happy if we make you decide. If _I_ make you decide. I love you so much..."

Here she broke down and cried, and it was Lincoln's turn to comfort her.

"I want you guys to be happy, okay? Whether you have a hundred days or a hundred years. Just please be happy, Lincoln. That's all I really want. Just be happy."

Lisa and Lori watched as Luan, Lincoln, and Lynn hugged each other tight. Lisa looked away from the screen and rubbed her eye. A particle, perhaps, or a speck of dirt.

Lori looked away as well. "Lisa?"

"What?"

"Turn it off. It's none of our business."


	15. All's Well in The Loud House

Lincoln woke on a sunny September morning and stretched. Warm Indian summer sunshine fell through the window, painting the carpet and the walls a soft shade of gold. He felt rested, and refreshed, like he always did when he fell asleep holding Luan, his face buried in her hair. His happiness was tinged with just a hint of sadness. He wanted to wake up next to her as well.

One step at a time, though.

In the hall, he rubbed his bleary eyes and started for the bathroom, but a strangled cry stopped him. He looked up just as Lynn rushed him, knocking into him and driving him to the floor. She threw her body across his and slammed the floor.

"One, two, three!"

She jumped up and lifted her arms in a giant V. "You gotta always be prepared, bro."

Luan walked out of her room and looked horrified.

"Lynn!" she cried, and Lynn stopped.

"You should have waited for me. This _totally_ would have gone viral."

"There's always next time," Lynn said, helping her brother to his feet. "Unless Lincoln steps up his game."

Lincoln smiled.

All was right with the world.

 **I'm actually sad that this story has come to an end. So sad, in fact, that a few hours after I finished this up, I started a sequel. It's called "Their First Time." I will post the first chapter or two later on, so look out for it. In it, Lincoln and Luan's relationship if threatened by snooping teachers, suspicious parents, and yet another sister's infatuation. Thank you for all the favorites, follows, and reviews.**


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